a pretty place to play

I really like the week between Christmas and New Year. There's no obligation to do anything or go anywhere, and you can get up and just hang out all day. So that's exactly what I've been doing, hanging out. It's also been nice being able to take a more leisurely approach to training. Not having to squeeze it in around loads of other commitments. Being able to lace up when I want to. In daylight. It's been quite the novelty and I've loved it, I don't really want to go back to normality tomorrow.

On Monday I headed up to Stretch for an hour of dynamic yoga. I'd not been to a yoga class in forever, and while online yoga is good, it's not the same as a class. It was so great to stretch out and get moving - I hadn't realised how stiff I'd gotten. A massive big thank you to Elle and Lululemon for giving me the gift of presence (aka a voucher for the class!).

DT joined me again for my shorter runs this week, so on Tuesday and Friday we ran fast 3 mile laps around the neighbourhood. Mixing things up on Wednesday we headed over to Crystal Palace to see the dinosaurs and lap the pond, clocking up four miles. It was so nice to run in daylight (something I rarely get to do in the week) and have company while I did it.

I didn't manage to cross train this week. I vaguely had it in my mind that I'd do an at home workout on New Year's Day, but I was too 'dehydrated' to face it, so spent the day eating the most amazing brunch at Kaff in Brixton (best brunch ever, ace cocktails and generally brilliant place to hang out). I don't regret it one bit.

I did introduce one new element to my training this week - the Blogilates 30 Day Flat Abs Challenge! My core is a bit rubbish, and if I am being really honest I'd quite like a more toned tummy. Because of the aforementioned dehydration I started a day late, but so far I like it!

Another thing I don't regret one bit? This week's long run! I needed to cover off 9 miles, and some of the other Team Naturally marathoners were running six. I ran the first three alone up to Waterloo before meeting the others for six miles around the Thames and a delicious brunch at Le Pain. It's always nice hanging out and running with these girls, there's positivity in the air when they talk and you couldn't ask for a more supportive group. I'm really looking forward to running many more miles with them over the next few months!